Turismo Pilipina 2008 Cultural Night

“Coming from the Island where the Tubbataha Reef is located , I am Kristine Barby Lureno of Puerto Princesa representing the beautiful Island of the last ecological frontier –Palawan.”

That is just one of the opening lines of the 57 beautiful candidates who are vying for the newest most coveted title in the Philippines today – Ms. Turismo Pilipina 2008.  All 57 candidates showed eloquence and elegance in their introductions as they came out with one of the most detailed opening statements i have ever heard in the pageants that I have attended.

I have been to a lot of pageants the past two years and I believe that this one is quite unique and very well thought of.  The Turismo Pilipina 2008 just had their Cultural Night at the Amoranto Theatre in which all 57 beautiful candidates were made to wear their province's local costume.  The accent on pushing Tourism is really something that is quite endearing to all the candidates. I just didn't notice if all regions or provinces were represented.

What makes the cultural night unique is that all the contestants paraded in different costumes which has relevance to the province that they represent.  All candidates explained the relevance of their costumes to their  province in their opening spiels which was enough to capture the significance of what they were wearing.

For me the most notable gowns were worn Ms. Palawan, Ms. Romblon, Ms. Navotas, Ms. Negros Occidental, Ms. Antique, Ms. Aklan and Ms. Laguna just to mention a few.  But honestly I can list down 20 good ones just to show the tight competition the ladies had in this cultural night which obviously showed the interesting diverse cultures here in our country.

I honestly believe that the judges led by fashion icon Rene Salud had a hard time scrutinizing all the beautiful gowns worn by the candidates. I think that this time around it took awhile before the judges came out with their scores and I think they had a hard time because there were a lot of stand outs.

To add more flavor to the event, this cultural night was hosted by two intelligent beauties who were winners of different prestigious national pageants.  Binibining Pilipinas – World 2007 Maggie Wilson and the brainy Ms. Phlippines- Earth 2006 Cathy Untalan were there as emcees and their insights were very valuable specially to the candidates’ supporters and who were there to root for their respective candidates.

After the presentation of costumes twelve candidates showcased their different talents with Ms. Apayao,  Ms. Laguna and Ms. Masbate coming out as the top three in this category. The best in Talent winner will be awarded on the coronation night. 

South Cotabato's most popular city is Marbel or Koronadal City and their  province is ably represented by the beauteous Loradel Reyes who is seen here wearing a the local costume of SOuth Cotabato natives. 

Other events lined up for Turismo Pilipina is the Terno Competition last November 7, 2008, the Long Gown and Swimsuit competition on Novemebr 10, 2008 at the Ynares Gym in Pasig and their interview with the judges on November 11,2008 at Hotel Rembrandt. The coronation  will be on November 14, 2008 at the AFP theatre.